Home > Consumer Reviews > Terk HDTVa Indoor Amplified High-Definition Antenna for Off-Air HDTV Reception

Having spent a bundle acquiring a Sony LCD HDTV and upgrading our Dish service to include its limited set of HDTV channels, we were anxious to see what an Over-the-Air Antenna might add.

In all, we tested 5, including the highly rated Zenith log periodic (about $40 at Sears), an amplified Samsung (about $99 at Best Buy), an outdoor Terk 32 (about $80 at Circuit City), our old roof mounted VHF/UHF antenna (circa 1985), and the amplified Terk HDTVa (about $50 at Radio Shack). The Terk HDTVa won hands down; no contest, blowing away the much touted Zenith.

We live in the sparsely populated, low hill countryside of Western Massachuetts. The THDTVa effortlessly brings in between 20 and 30 analogue and digital (incl hdtv) channels broadcast most from 12 to 45 miles away, and some as far as 65+ miles away in Connecticut. Some digital OTA channels actually come in more sharply than some of the (Dish) satellite digital channels.

This is definitely a keeper: a great value, gem of an antenna. So good, in fact, we are debating giving up our $50/month Dish service, putting $15 of that to Netflix to replace HBO, and banking the remaining $35.

I'm a first timer at getting OTA HDTV. This has been an experiment in progress for the past 5 weeks. I have gone through four antennas (they are all here as I write this) before finding something that's satisfactory (rather than tolerable).

I live around 25 miles from Manhattan, where the towers of most TV stations are located. I am also aware of the directional information from [...], and have experimented accordingly with its effects on reception. My apartment's windows all face north, while the signals all comes from southwest. I cannot get signals from where it comes from, and thus needed to get signals from deflections perhaps off nearby buildings and trees. It's a very poor circumstance for over-the-air reception, maybe just slightly better than being underground. Signals are weak, and are affected by weather. Stormy and windy days have shown effects at disrupting signal reception.

With this said, and without going into much detail, let's talk about the antennas. Now all these antenna have been tested with the same equipment, setup, directional adjustments, location, etc. etc. and have been tested through good an foul weather, day and night, to observe differences.

1.Terk HDTVa Terk HDTVa Indoor Amplified High-Definition Antenna for Off-Air HDTV Reception- After reading some rave reviews and high ratings at [...], log periodic types (looks like a fishbone) seems to be the way to go. I got the Terk HDTVa first, thinking that the amplification and VHF antenna should nail my reception problems at the start. However, after more than two weeks of fidgeting around ad nauseam (directions, locations, amplifications, different devices, etc.), I only managed to pick up two ATSC channels' signals, and even those don't have strong enough signals to display anything. I thought maybe it's just my poor location, and that I should probably give up on the attempt. The included in-line amplifier dongle doesn't work at all. Powering it on makes no difference in signal strength readings, which hovered around 5-10%.

It is well built, looks nice, good concepts, but it just didn't work.

2.Phlips PHDTV1 Philips PHDTV1 Digital HDTV-UHF Indoor Antenna- The venerated "silver sensor" which was previously sold under the Zenith brand also had great ratings and reviews. It's in fact nearly legendary. I decided, in desperation, to try it out, even if it doesn't have amplification. It seems all my local HD channels are in UHF anyway, so I won't miss the VHF dipoles.

The unit has startlingly poorer build quality compared to the Terk. It has paint bubbles, hairs and dusts trappings in the paint, sharp edged cheap plastics and much thinner metal blades that's covered in oil and has some dings and bendings. I wasn't impressed with the quality, and didn't expect much from it as I set it up.

To my surprise, it picked up 9 working channels (note: the terk got two channels' signals, but they didn't work) from the start, even if it's randomly placed. It's thrilling as it was the first time I saw OTA HDTV. After some adjustment and location experiments, I was able to receive 19 channels. However, not all of these channels work well given the same direction.

The directionally sensitive antenna needs to be adjusted as I switch channels. e.g. NBC and CBS seems to work well in one direction, while ABC has its own favorite direction, which works also with FOX. I tried as best as possible to find a compromise point where everything works. I couldn't. It just needs to be adjusted constantly.

The transmission is often dogged by reception fluctuations. Signal quality tend to fluctuate quite a bit, especially affected by weather. That means the TV playback would get choppy at times, with its severity dependent on the direction I point the antenna at. I didn't think fluctuating signals was a characteristic until I tried the latter two antennas later. I also found that I had to constantly play with the directional positioning to get a stable signal from each of the stations.

It works, and I was impressed, but then in retrospect it could only be best described as a "tolerable" HDTV experience as I struggled for a smooth signal delivery.

3.RCA ANT111 Basic Indoor Antenna- While shopping in stores, I saw this basic and classic RCA loop/dipole antenna for less than $[...]. I couldn't resist the temptation to try it out, just for the heck of it. It is also a different type of antenna than the previous two.

Again, I was surprised. This cheap antenna worked well, especially considering how it's only a fraction of the price of the two I'd tried. I ended up getting 17 channels, a few less than the PHDTV1, with the same location and setup. Some channels also don't work, even if signals were detected. The quality of the signals seems to be the key.

So what's so special about it? It strangely had better signal delivery for the channels that worked. It's not as choppy, and quality level is very steady. It is also not as affected by directional positioning. I was for the first time able to view FOX, ABC, CBS, NBC without adjusting the antenna. However, the lack of directionality also makes it ambiguous when I lost the signal. It seems that there's no "favorite direction" for the channels, which also means I can't pull in stronger signals at my choosing. It is also quite susceptible to weather changes, particularly wind (which probably affected signals reflected by trees?)

The signal strength also seems to be a little weaker, though the signal quality tend to be higher in general. That probably contributed to the smoother video delivery. It also tempted me to get a similar design that has amplification.

4.Philips MANT510 Philips High Performance Amplified Indoor Uhf/ Vhf/ Fm Antenna- This unit has a "digital TV optimized, patent pending UHF panel array". I thought I'd try it out just for the slightly different antenna design, if not just for the adjustable amplification.

Well, it works, and works quite well. The antenna doesn't work without power, and with amplification turned off it works a little less than unpowered PHDTV1 and ANT111. Yet with the amplification turned on, I get 24 channels, with strength up to 81% (compared to 3-10% unamplified, and quality consistently above 60 and usually in the 70-90%+. That generates the most reliable video delivery of all the ones tried.

While thunderstorms still managed to distrupt signals, it's much less often and only momentarily. I also don't have to worry about hunting for signals as I just point it in one general direction and I get everything but three NJN channels (they are even further from here.. maybe a good 50 miles).

I finally can just set the antenna and forget it. It lets me focus on the programming rather than antenna adjustment. While it needs to be powered, it gives me the confidence to finally enjoy HDTV, rather than tweaking and tolerating it. It's good enough that I can probably stop searching. I hope it'll be helpful to you who may be going through the same purchasing decision nausea as I have.

I'm in SF Bay Area, about 30 miles from Sutro Tower. This was my first antenna and it worked out of the box for me. It is not perfect and I'm holding between 70 and 90% signal strength on all the majors with better reception than satellite. I can't compare it to any others but to say "it doesn't work" is insane. You won't know until you try it. This is not an all or nothing deal. It will work great for some, not at all for others and anywhere in between.

To check your specific situation, I recommend you try www.antennaweb.org. Click button on first page, enter your full address and you will get a report unique to your home about how/where your channels are broadcast, including a map showing exactly how you should point your antenna. In my case, all my required channels were "yellow" and all in the same compass direction. If you are very far from broadcast source or channels are coming from many different directions, it may not work. However, with good return policy, it can't hurt to try.

The problem with antennas is:
1. people misuse them
2. They are advertised to do more than what they do.

How to solve both problems:
1. Go to www.antennaweb.org to pick your antenna and where you should point it
2. Borrow a similar antenna from your friend before buying.

With that in mind, I'll specify what this antenna can do.
I live in Costa Mesa, CA, on the 2nd floor. The northern skyline is mostly open, another 2 story apartment and a tree is basically the only obstruction. Antennaweb reports that the stations are 42 miles away, orientation 333 deg. It also states that if I have no obstructions, I should be able to use a small directional antenna (yeah right?!). If there are buildings near by, then I would need a medium amplified or some BS, basically, forget it.

Another place you can go is www.hdtvprimer.com. Read the section on Antennas. It will tell you that you need a different antenna for each different situation. In a city, the Sharpshooter, is probably better than this type. You also see the GAIN depending on frequency. Antenna web will tell you what frequencies you need, this help you with what gain on what frequencies. Also read the section on amplifiers. You don't want to amplify noise, introduce noise, or reflections.

With all that in mind, lets try small directional. I borrowed a Terk HDTVi, plugged it into a settop box in the bedroom. At first nothing. Then I pointed it north out the window. Amazingly, I received 60% of the digital channels. Then with the signal strength indicator on, I adjusted the positioning. Ended up NNW being the best, just as Antennaweb recommended, receiving most of the HD digital channels (I didn't count).

At this point, my Samsung TX-S3082WH was delivered, and I set it in the living room (note, different room, different window). My Terk HDTVa was also delivered. I purposely plugged it in without the amplifier. Again, I was able to receive some of the signals. I re-adjusted but still, somehow the signal was weaker. The settop box tuning seemed better than my TV. Then I plugged in and installed the inline amplifier. Very strong signal strength, probably ALL the channels. I am not sure about the quality of the Terk amplifier, since at rare occasions, I get macroblocks. However, it seems to be better than the HDTVi The weather also has not been a factor yet.

Conclusion:
The antenna works as advertised. It works because I am using it in the correct way. There are many factors in receiving the HDTV signal, be aware of all of them. I would give it 5 stars but it isn't hot or sexy in any way.

I live about 12 miles from the TV towers, and this antenna gets most of the HDTV channels most of the time. The odd thing about off-the-air HDTV is that it is nearly an all or nothing situation. If you get enough signal, picture quality is perfect...on the edge of enough signal, you get some drop outs...a little less signal and you get no picture at all! At my location, rain and wind cause drop outs on several channels (wet, blowing trees are not good for UHF reception!). Also, some adjustment is required when I change channels.